Home Entertainment Chris O'Dowd and Ray Romano to lead GET SHORTY TV series

Chris O'Dowd and Ray Romano to lead GET SHORTY TV series

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The other day we heard the news that Harry Potter alum and Nick’s ginger role model Rupert Grint would be headlining a new TV series adaptation of Guy Ritchie’s Snatch. Well, it would appear that this is the week for unexpected castings for TV series adaptations of beloved crime comedies filled with lowlifes and tough guys. Deadline is reporting that Chris O’Dowd (The I.T. Crowd, Bridesmaids) and Ray Romano (Everybody Loves Raymond, Ice Age) are set to star in an upcoming 10-part series based on Get Shorty.

Originally a celebrated novel by Elmore Leonard, Get Shorty was adapted into a 1995 movie by director Barry Sonnenfeld starring John Travolta, Gene Hackman, Rene Russo and Danny DeVito. In the movie Travolta played Miami loan shark Chili Palmer who gets sent to Hollywood by an unhinged mob boss to collect a debt from Hackman’s B-movie producer Harry Zimm. However Chili hits it off romantically with Zimm’s leading lady, played by Russo, and gets convinced to instead try to make a movie about his life, finding that producing a movie has a lot in common with dishing out mob justice.

This new version will essentially see the characters of Chili Palmer and Harry Zimm’s names changed to Miles Daly and Rick, with O’Dowd and Romano playing the respective parts. The rest of the premise is being kept similar though, centering on Daly, “who works as muscle for a murderous crime ring in Nevada. For the sake of his daughter, he attempts to change professions and become a movie producer, laundering money through a Hollywood film. But instead of leaving the criminal world behind, he accidentally brings it with him to Los Angeles. Romano would play Rick, a washed up producer of low quality films who becomes Miles’ partner and guide through the maze of Hollywood”. There’s no word yet on the roles played by Russo or DeVito.

It will be intriguing to see how O’Dowd’s Miles Daly measures up to Travolta’s Chili Palmer, a role that netted the actor a Golden Globe for his turn as the super-cool tough guy. O’Dowd is more known for his comedic roles than anything else, so I really can’t quite picture him in this. Romano would have an easier transition, as I can definitely see him pulling off the slimy film producer gig.

At this point there’s no word yet on whether the roles played by Russo and DeVito would also be adapted for the TV series, and if so who would play them.

Davey Holmes, writer/producer on such popular shows as Shameless, Pushing Daisies and Chicago Code will be penning the series, which is being co-produced by Epix and MGM TV. The show is set to debut sometime in 2017.

Last Updated: August 25, 2016

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